Editors' Review

Malwarebytes 3.0 was a major update when it arrived in December 2016 -- and like many major updates, some aspects were a little rough, particularly stability within Windows 10. With version 3.2, the company claims it has corrected some major issues, so let's take a look at how this revision stacks up.

Pros

It's stable in Windows 10: With version 3.0, some users (us included) experienced seemingly random blue-screen errors in Windows 10 unless we disabled most or all of Malwarebytes' active scanning functions. As a result, there wasn't a lot to distinguish the paid version from the free one. However, we can report that we didn't see any BSODs in Windows 10 during our testing of 3.2. This was the only truly major issue we saw in version 3.0, so addressing it brings Malwarebytes back up to "recommended" status.

The scanning engine remains high-quality: During our tests, the app's malware scanner picked up some files and a Registry entry left over from an apparently incomplete uninstallation of a third-party driver management utility that, according to Malwarebytes, may have bundled a potentially unwanted program (PUP). Malwarebytes defaulted to placing these files in quarantine rather than deleting them. This is actually the preferred reflex, since PUPs aren't necessarily harmful, and extracting them can disable the program that they came with. Generally speaking, Malwarebytes' scanning tech is rated favorably by independent testers, such as West Coast Labs and Google's VirusTotal service, and it's cultivated a reputation for not bogging down your PC.

Detailed, plain-English explanations: While other security vendors often slather on fancy-sounding terminology, Malwarebytes is good at telling you exactly what a given feature is doing. Take the "Usage and Threat Statistics" toggle, for example. This covers the anonymous usage data that it collects. In the description on its website, Malwarebytes itemizes basic things like, how many people are running the free version, trial version, and subscription versions? Where is Malwarebytes being used globally? What malware is being detected the most, and how often?

Its full privacy policy even includes detailed and simplified explanations side-by-side. This kind of transparency about your data -- and the deliberately limited extent of it -- is good to have, and it's not as common in the security industry as it should be.

Cons

Limited testing by independent labs: The company asserts that the average "zero day" malware (the kind that's too new for there to be reliable detection/removal) has only a 55 percent detection rate, which can make a given antimalware app look worse than it is when subjected to a barrage of zero-day infections during testing. Therefore, Malwarebytes does not submit its apps to the full gauntlets provided by AV-Test and AV-Comparatives, whose testing takes special notice of zero-day security. However, if Malwarebytes wants to be recognized among its competition, we'd argue that it needs to submit its apps to the same rigorous standards as the competition, even if those standards can create perception issues.

Bottom Line

Now that Malwarebytes appears to have fixed its stability issues in version 3.2, the user experience is rounded out nicely. However, we'd like to see Malwarebytes go through the gauntlets set up by AV-Comparatives and AV-Test to get a better picture of how it stacks up against the competition.

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Publisher's Description

From Malwarebytes:
Malwarebytes combines powerful new technologies built to seek out, destroy, and prevent malware infections.

Malwarebytes 3.0 is the next-gen security program that protects you from the most advanced (zero-day) threats, making antivirus obsolete. Malwarebytes 3.0 combines all of our malware-fighting technology - anti-malware, anti-ransomware, anti-exploit, and malicious website protection into one program that scans 4x faster than previous versions of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Premium.

Benefits:

Protects you from advanced (zero-day) threats, including ransomware, so you can surf the Web without worry

I don't know where to start. It's buggy. I run it on my Windows 10 "play" computer, and on my Windows 7 work computer. Both OS's give no end of problems. Keeps turning itself off. Real time protection keeps turning off. Auto updates don't work. Notifications are endless and "whiny", constantly. Something is wrong. I have the full paid lifetime membership, and I have to run the cleaner they offer to remove it, and reinstalled it dozens of times to fix a bug. In Win 10, the old version 2 keeps starting up on reboot, so 2 and 3 run at the same time. In 7, I doubt if it even works.Not to mention the toxic update that came out not long ago, that ate up all the RAM and bricked the computers.

Summary

I guess it would be fine as a malware backup scanner, for stuff that isn't an actual virus. However, to use this as your sole protection? No. It's buggy, annoying, unreliable, none fo the features work and it's endless reinstalls to try and make it work. Waste of time and money. I hate it.

It got rid of some MacCleaner something that got on my computer that I DID NOT install voluntarily, so that was good - HOWEVER.....

Cons

My opinion - As soon as Malwarebytes free trial expired and it started giving me notifications that it was expired, I now have a problem where if I click a "like" on an article or try to comment, a pop up window opens and closes unendingly -- I believe this was put on my computer to start when the free trial was up.

Very accurate, and fast. Running a scan doesn't take all day, and the software is totally intuitive.

Cons

None I've encountered.

Summary

I received a ransomware email which was very disturbing. I contacted Malwarebytes support website, and Maurice answered quickly, and stayed with me on how to be certain there was no malware on my computer. I do have the Premium and recommend it highly as an addition to your regular antivirus software. Ransomware is getting worse every day, and the added security is worth the price for safety.

I started with the free to try premium and they terminated it to use the free version. Either way, the pop up notifications about out of date definitions are endless. I needed to make a fifteen minute presentation to a client. Within the fifiteen minute period, I received 5 pop up notifications that my definitions were out of date and needed to be updated. I tried turning off anything having to do with notifications under settings. I downgraded to the free program (with no real time protection). I even disconnected from the internet. Nothing stops the nofications. Practically, every few minutes a new one appears. I finally uninstalled the program.

This used to be a great program. Who in their right mind things I need to receive 5 notifications in 15 minutes? There absolutely should be a way to turn these things off.

This is a light-weight program, the scans appears quite extensive, so it's likely it would find most problems.

Cons

Main problem is that it keeps turning itself off. Web protection, in particular, is off more often than not, especially after a Windows update. Since Windows 10 updates itself a lot, that means Malwarebytes needs to be re-installed very, very often as the bug fixes don't seem to stick. Malwarebytes certainly CANNOT be used without a strong anti-virus program.

Summary

There is no point buying the professional version as it doesn't function as advertised.

These guys are too big for their boots. They dont bother to tell you that in the process of removing adware which makes your computer half usable.. you will likely have no internet use at all after its finished. Then what do you do. Again no guide or warnings, but apparently you have to become a member of their forum and spend days posting logs to their staff, while learning all about their etiquette. But you better learn it well, while dealing with all the other stuff in life including a messed up PC. One word of complaint, or post in the wrong place and you get banned from there. Very nice bunch I dont think so.

It can be run alongside other anti virus software that isn't as buggy and will actually protect you without disabling itself for no reason.

Cons

This is supposed to protect you from some of the smartest code cracking scum on the planet who are intent on hacking your computer and stealing your stuff, but Malwarebytes can't even fix an issue that has been around since they first released this version (V3) and that is it's constant turning off of "protection modules". They turn off and refuse to turn back on again. Their way of fixing this is to ask you to uninstall and re-install the software, sounds simple but doing it on a daily or weekly basis will soon wear thin on you. They have tried to make the process easier by having an "uninstall tool" which does a clean remove of all the components.
I think their time would have been better spent gettting a fix for what is a huge problem. It's pretty simple, if the software protection turns off then you have no protection. You are vulnerable to attack. And it does it constantly, and they seem unable or unwilling to fix it.

Summary

After paying for it I am loath to remove it so I keep it on my PC in the vain hope they will fix the major issues with it but in the meantime I run other antivirus and anti malware programs.
I will be unlikely to pay for it again however as they just seem happy to have a really buggy piece of software remain that way. The issue has been ongoing for several updates over a year now.
Verdict..... A waste of money.

This anti-malware and anti-spyware software only take up little system resources when I running a full scan for the whole hard drive, I still can do other work at the same time with no affected.
Malwarebytes is an anti-malware and anti-spyware software, it can resist the attacks from the Internet, it can remove worms, rogues, dialers, Trojans, rootkits, spyware, vulnerabilities, zombies, and other malware. Effectively prevent hackers.The free version has limit on the real-time protect.

This is a good anti-malware and anti-spyware software, it only take up little system resources when I running a full scan for the whole hard drive, I still can do other work at the same time with no affected.
Malwarebytes is an anti-malware and anti-spyware software, it can resist the attacks from the Internet, it can remove worms, rogues, dialers, Trojans, rootkits, spyware, vulnerabilities, zombies, and other malware. Effectively prevent hackers.

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